Growing In
by xXFindingForeverXx
Summary: Hermione Granger is overweight with an anxiety disorder. Angelina Johnson is a nurse with secrets. Add rich playboy Draco Malfoy and drug addicted George Weasley and you've got what is sure to be a recipe for disaster. A story about growing up, growing in, and loving one's self. Rated M for future chapters.
1. The Real World

**So this is an AU story that I hope you all like. It's my first Dramione fic in a long time and kinda marks my return to writing in general. I plan on finishing my other fics when this is done... so yeah. That's all I had to say.**

Growing In

Ch. 1- The Real World

**Hermione's POV:**

My name is Hermione Ganger and I'm a shut in. Or rather, I was a shut in up until a few weeks ago when my two best friends decided it was high time I found a job and joined the 'Real World'. I was perfectly content to live the rest of my life as an old woman with a thousand cats who stalked the blogs of hot guys on tumblr. But here I am, sitting on the edge of my bed wishing I had more time to figure out where I could hide.

"You can't escape, darling. You might as well surrender yourself before I call Angelina in here to drag you out," Ginny teased from behind my locked door. Ginny Potter was a redheaded fox who was as strong willed as she was beautiful. Well, maybe she was slightly more strong willed than beautiful. Only slightly though.

Operation: Get Hermione A Life had been her idea initially. Which made perfect sense seeing as she was the pushy one between my two friends. Don't get me wrong, I love the girl but she can be a serious handful sometimes.

"Ange! She won't come out" Ginny called out after two minutes of silence fell between us. I glared at my door before throwing my favorite pillow at it. That fricken witch!

**Regular POV:**

"You can glare and throw tantrums all you want but you're going to work!" Ginny yelled teasingly again. Hermione listened as her heels clicked against the wood floor as she walked down the hall towards the steps. The footsteps that followed were steady and quiet which could only mean Angelina was coming.

Hermione sighed and flopped back on her purple bedspread as Angelina unlocked the door with her master key.

"Are you ready?" Angelina asked as she stepped into the room and closed the door behind her. Hermione peaked over her stuffed bunny and looked over her friend's appearance. Angelina was dressed in her regular blue scrubs with a purple sweater hanging in her arms. Her black hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail which left the chocolatey skin of her face exposed. She looked pretty in that subtle way she always managed to pull off.

"No," Hermione muttered childishly as she wiggled around on her large bed.

"Why not? You don't like how you look?" Ange asked, taking her own time now to look over her younger friend. She couldn't find anything out of place with the beige button up blouse or black slacks that she wore with it. Her curly mane pulled into a high bun leaving her own round face open.

"I think you look nice. I told you having your hair up would look good. Come on, Ginny's offered to drive you to your first day," Angelina stated as she sat down next to her chubby friend. Hermione peaked over her stuffed animal at her smiling friend and sighed for what was probably the thousandth time that morning. She pushed herself up slowly before pulling Angelina's hand into her own.

"I'm... nervous and queasy. I don't think I can do this," she admitted as her brown eyes began to fill with tears. Angelina rubbed circles around her friends palm before laying a quick peck on it.

"Take deep breaths and remember your chant. Calm and cool. Calm and cool. Say it with me."

Hermione nodded her head slowly as she began to repeat the mantra her mother had taught her when they had first realized she had an anxiety disorder.

"Do you feel better?" Angelina asked after two minutes. Hermione nodded her head slightly.

"I'm still a bit nervous and queazy but I don't feel like jumping off a bridge anymore," Hermione admitted with trembling hands. Angelina hugged her tightly, both of them knowing that her jest was completely serious.

"If this is too much I'll tell Ginny to go home and forget about it. You can stay in here and have thousands of cats and stalk hot guys on that site you like so much," Angelina said as she stood.

"No, no. I need to do this. I don't want to. I really, really, really don't want to but I need to," Hermione admitted solemnly.

Angelina looked her peached colored friend over once more before nodding her head and stepped towards the door.

"You come down when you want to. I packed you lunch, it's on the stove and Crooks has been whining for you all morning," Angelina said with a smile before she left out of the room. Hermione looked at herself in her full length mirror and winced as she noticed just how much her outfit accented her rolls of fat. She wiped away a stray tear before she found the courage to stand and leave her room.

'Here I come, real world,' she thought to herself before she descended the stairs.

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"Are you excited?" Ginny asked as Hermione slid into the passenger seat of Ginny's red Mercedes. Hermione shook her head as she tried to fasten her seatbelt and rolled her eyes when it stopped a bit short.

"Sorry about that. Let it go back in and then pull it out. It does that sometimes," Ginny said as she pulled out of her parking space infront of the house Angelina and Hermione shared. Hermione sighed and did as instructed and smiled a slight bit as she finally secured her seatbelt.

"So what did Ange pack you for lunch?" Ginny asked as she speed through the streets in her shiny car. Hermione held onto her lunch for dear life and sighed when they finally reached a stop sign.

"Um, she packed me yesterday's left overs. Baked chicken, mashed potatoes, and peas with a roll," Hermione said with a smile. At least she would have some comfort food to calm her nerves if they got too bad by midday.

"Doesn't sound too bad. But maybe you can eat some celery or a salad? Harry tells me they have great healthy choices in the food court," Ginny suggested and sighed as she watched Hermione begin to curl inwards.

"I don't mean to be mean but... how are you ever going to find someone when you're so heavy? And not to mention how unhealthy it is to be... fat," Ginny whispered the last word as if it saying it aloud would cast some type of curse on her. The idea of which probably would have amused Hermione on just about any other day. Needless to say, today was not one of those.

Even with her senses on such high alert, Hermione could felt herself close off as Ginny's words faded into nothingness. It was a coping mechanism she had learned early in life, one that she probably never would made it this far in life without.

"Mione? Mione!" Ginny shouted as they stopped infront of the Sirius building that had been built in honor of Sirius Black a one time war veteran/convicted terrorist who had been falsely imprisoned and murdered by followers of the pervious Prime Minister.

"Uh, yeah. Sorry. I kind of dazed out a bit. What were you saying?" Hermione asked as she turned her head to look at her slightly miffed friend. Ginny just rolled her eyes and got out of the car looking every bit the fashionista that she was. Hermione admired the emerald green wrap dress that accented her friend's waif like figure and the black heels she wore that made her long legs look even longer.

"Stop checking me out and come on," Ginny teased as she flicked her long red hair behind her back. Hermione rolled her eyes again before making her way out of the car and onto the sidewalk where she followed her good friend into the huge building.

"I'm going to visit Harry, he's on the 41st floor. If you need any help or something you can go to him. You remember which floor to go to for Publishing, right?" Ginny asked as she touched up her make up in the silver doors of the closed elevator.

"Yeah, I'm on the twelth floor," Hermione muttered in response. She looked over herself and then at her tall friend next to her. She looked frumpy. Which made since, she was the frumpy friend after all. Always had been.

But that didn't make it suck any less.

Here she was, standing next to a bombshell beauty in a lobby filled with gorgeous to average looking individuals and she was the only one out of place. Sure there were other overweight people in the crowd but most of them were men. Men who'd probably never had to deal with the pains of self loathing like she had.

No, no, she was being selfish and selfcentered! Everyone had problems. Those men probably dealt with people making fun of them too and they probably still did. Who was she to determine who had things worse off? The previously suicidal nutcase, she reminded herself silently as they entered the elevator. She ignored any chatter from Ginny in the five minutes it took the crowded elevator to arrive on her floor.

"Well, have a good day at work, Mione," Ginny said as she pushed her out of the elevator and into an office filled with curious looking people. Everyone stared at her as if she was some disease as she made her way to the office of Cho Chang, who had been the one to hire her and was also an old college friend.

"Cho?" she asked softly as she slowly pushed the door open. She stared wide eyed as she watched Cho in what seemed to be a heated make out session with... Padma Patil?

"Um... sorry to interrupt?" Hermione said as she cleared her throat once more. She wished the floor would just open up and swallow her, she was so embarassed. Maybe, if she was lucky Cho would just fire her now and save her nerves from what she was sure would be a shit day.

"Oh, sorry. Sorry, Hermione. I totally forgot I told you to be here early. Um... you remember Padma? She's my um... assisstant. She's going to show you around and help you get settled in," Cho said as her face burned bright red. Padma giggled nervously before placing a quick peck on Cho's cheek and then leading Hermione out of the office.

"Please don't mention that to anyone else... we aren't public," Padma said after one tense moment. Hermione shook her head and smiled awkwardly as she tried to avoid Padma's brown eyes by looking intently at the hustle and bustle of her new workplace.

"What you and Cho do is none of my business and I won't make it anyone else's business either," she assured as she followed the petite girl around the large office of Ravenclaw Publishing House.

"Thank you," Padma said with a simple smile before she stopped at a small cubicle close to the back of the office.

"This is where you'll be. Cho said you have a bit of anxiety so I wasn't sure where to place you. I thought here because it's close to the elevator but farther away from everyone else. You're our new desk editior and which means a lot of interaction with the production, marketing, and sales departments which I hope you can handle. There's a copy of a manuscript already on your desk that I'd like you to get started on. The author's email is on the front so make sure to get in contact with him if there are any problems with the plot or something. If changes are a must make sure to bring it to Cho first and then she'll deal with him. Overall it's not a hard job and you'll probably be used to it before you know it," Padma explained. Hermione looked over her new work area and breathed a sigh of relief as she slid into the comfortable leather chair.

"Um... what time can I take lunch?" Hermione asked after a moment of appraising her new work area.

"You can take it at one but be back by two. You also have a fifteen minute break so use it wisely. I have to get back to Cho but you can find me if you need anything else," Padma said with a grin before she walked back towards her lover's office.

Hermione looked at the stack of papers on her desk and smiled. She could do this... or at least she hoped she could.


	2. In My Own Time

**Chapter two is here! I'm happy there seems to be at least some interest in my story. I don't like the idea of doing things conventionally so I'll be trying to avoid most cliches with this story. Anyway it's a bit short but I hope you still enjoy it. After the next chapter they should get longer. I just want to get the intro out of the way.**

Growing In

Ch. 2- In My Own Time

Angelina smiled as she waved her friends off, her cup of coffee held tight in her hand. She walked back into her small home once they had disappeared around the corner and headed silently to her own room on the first level of their olive colored home.

She opened the door and sighed as she looked over her redheaded sometimes-lover, snoring softly and wrapped in her white comforter. She wanted to yell at him to leave just as much as she wanted to beg him to stay with her, forever.

"George. I have to go soon. Will you be here when I get back?" She asked softly as she sat on the edge of her bed, running her brown fingers through his flamming red hair. He turned his head to face her, his gaunt face shifting over the muscle as he grinned at her.

"Mmm, do you have to go?" George groaned out as he looked up at her. Angelina kissed him softly on the cheek before shaking her head in the affirmative.

"I do. You know I work at the hospital. I don't think they'd approve of me taking a day off without some good reason," she murmured softly.

"I'm not a good reason?" he teased softly as he took her hand and kissed her fingers with a crooked smile. Angelina looked down at him before turning her head to look away from his bright brown eyes. If she kept looking at him she would do exactly what he wanted.

"I can't, George. You could... come with me though," she suggested and sighed as he threw her hand away from his face. He quickly jumped from her bed and moved to the other side of the room to dress himself.

"George, please?" she pleaded as she looked him over. He was so thin and pale, he looked so fragile. He needed help, there was no other way to put it. He was just too damned stubborn to realize it yet!

"I don't want to, Ange. I just... I just want to keep going like this," George murmured as he pulled on a dingy white shirt. Angelina stopped him before he could even pull it all the way down by handing him a clean brown shirt and a clean pair of blue jeans to wear.

"You keep like this and you're going to die, George," Angelina said coldly as she gathered his dirty clothing and placed them in her hamper. Taking the route of the considerate friend hardly ever got him to do what she wanted but usually her cold attitude would light a fire under his butt and make him take action. Of course that was past George. This George... this George was so different that she hardly ever knew how to deal with him.

"I want to be with him, Ange. More than I want to be with anyone else," George muttered dejectedly as he sat, slumped on the very edge of her bed.

"He wouldn't want this. He wouldn't want you in so much pain," Angelina said as she crouched before him, holding his hands tightly. George sneered and pulled away from her again before he slipped his shoes onto his large feet.

"You would know, right?! Cause you knew him best, right? My _brother_, my _twin_ and you knew him best," George hissed, the venom in his words hitting her square in the chest making her stagger back slightly.

"You know I didn't mean it like that," Angelina assured as she reached to hold his hand with the one hand that wasn't gripping her chest as if her heart would explode.

"No! Don't touch me! Don't," he said sternly as he slammed the door to her room in her face. Angelina sighed as she sat on the floor in her room in tears. She had almost lost Hermione, had lost Fred, and now she was close to losing George. How much more would have to be taken from her? How who would she have to lose before life gave up fucking with her?

"I promised, Freddy, but I don't know how much longer I can do this," she whispered as she rocked back and forth, finally giving into her inner turmoil.

1-2-3-4-5-

"Nurse Johnson, could you please help me with Mr. Ferretti here?" Dr. Zabini requested as he looked over his latest patient. Mr. Ferretti was a scraggly old man who spoke only a little english who had come in complaining of abdominal pains which they found to be due to a peptic ulcer.

Angelina came in and waved kindly at the older man who she had been looking over before turning to face the Blaise.

"Could you please administer his medicine and see to it that he gets bathed properly? He had back sores when he came in," Blaise said as he looked over the chart.

"Alright. Is there anything else?" Angelina asked as she looked over the chart on the clipboard attached to Mr. Ferretti's bed to see what medicines and the doses of the medicines that he would need.

"That's all. Thank you, nurse," Blaise murmured as he walked out of the room and into the busy hallway of St. Mungo's before slapping his forehead. Another chance at asking her out and he'd blown it like some lovestruck little boy.

"Still haven't asked her?" a new voice taunted. Blaise turned around and groaned as he caught sight of his good friend Theodore Nott.

"No, I haven't asked her. There hasn't... there hasn't been a good time," Blaise said quickly as he moved along to complete his rounds. Theo laughed loudly and shook his head as he followed after his dark skinned friend.

"It'll never be a good time at this rate. You've got to take a chance, yeah? Or someone will swoop in and sweep her right off her feet," Theo warned as he looked back at the smiling Angelina who stood talking to the frail Mr. Ferretti animatedly.

"I know, Theo. No need to remind me. I'll do it in my own time," Blaise assured as he peaked into the room of another of his patients.

"Well you better hope it isn't too late," Theo said finally before patting Blaise on the back and making his way to check on his own patients. Blaise watched after his friend and then looked back down the hall where Angelina was standing with another nurse. He rubbed his forehead before taking a deep breath and entering the room of Ms. Brown.

"In my own time," he muttered quietly to himself.

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"So are you coming home to stay then, George?" Mrs. Weasley asked as she watched her broken son pick at the pancakes she had made upon noticing his return. He had been coming home less and less as the weeks went by which made her worry more than she let on.

"No," he mumbled stiffly as he pushed the plate away from him. He didn't have much of an appetite after his arguement with Angelina. They had been doing that more and more recently.

"How's Angelina? Is she still allowing you in her home?" his mother asked as she wrung her hands fretfully. George nodded his head absently as he took in the sight of her. She looked older today than she had the last time he had saw her. How long had then been? Two weeks or two months? Time seemed to be slipping from between his fingers as each new day passed and blurred with the last.

"That's nice of her. At least I know where you are," she said softly as she made to touch his hand. He just let her do as she pleased and sighed heavily. Usually his would stanch his hand away but then again, usually he was high or drunk. Sometimes a happy combination of both. And sometimes the combination wasn't so happy.

"It looks different here," he observed. It was true too. The kitchen he had grown up in had always been in an ordered disarray. Pot and pans and plates in crooked cabinets. Utinsels stuffed tight into drawers on the verge of breaking. Even in the clutter it was always warm and cozy. A place they had all loved to venture into for a snack or even to just playfully pester their mom.

"Harry and Ginny paided for it to get remodelled. Actually right now almost the whole house is in some state of remodelling. Percy and Audrey are paying to get the bathrooms redone, Fleur and Bill paid for the den as well as both the front and back yard to be done, Charlie even paying for the plumming and stuff to get fixed," Molly said with a slight smile as she thought over how giving her children were.

"And the bedrooms?" George asked as his hands folded into tight fists. Molly quickly shook her head and put up her hands to calm his mounting temper.

"No, of course not!" she cried out just as George stood and began to pace back and forth in what was her lovely new kitchen, painted in baby blues and eggshell white. The drawrs and cabinets were in neat order and he could bet everything inside was just as neat and even. It was all wrong!

"You changed everything! Things he touched are gone! Are you trying to get rid of him? Throw away his memory? Everything needs to be the same not different. If it's different how will you remember? How will anyone remember?" George raved as his pacing slowed to a stop, his breathing coming out in short heavy gasps. Molly rushed to him and pulled him close to her chest for reassurance. They stood like that for what felt like hours but was more like minutes before George gently pushed her away and moved quickly to leave out the back door.

"George, he isn't coming back even if we keep everything the same he'll never come back. I'm hurt too, George. You may have lost a brother but I lost two sons that day," Molly stated gently. George twisted the doorknob in his hand slowly as he thought her words over.

"You're wrong. I did't just lose my brother. I lost part of myself. Everything that made me _**me**_. That's what I lost. And I'll never have that back again. You have other children and grandchildren to love in his place. But for me no one will ever be able to fill the hole," he declared before slamming the door behind him.

Molly slid soundlessly back into her chair as she watched him leave through the garden, producing a bottle from the lapel of his oversized jacket. What had she done in her life to ever deserve this? What had she done to ever deserve such painful lives for her children?


	3. I Want To Be Normal

**Firstly I want to apologize for any typos. I don't have an editor anymore and though I read it over and over before I submit I know I may have missed a few things. This chapter's short but I kinda saw the first three chapters as a sort of introduction so after this chapter they'll be getting longer.**

Growing In

Ch. 3- I Want To Be Normal

'Calm and cool,' Hermione chanted to herself as she stood in the salad bar line. She had decided to take Ginny's advice, a salad was as good a lunch as any. At least that's what she kept telling herself on the way down. But that didn't stop her from bringing down her warmed up lunch with her just in case she didn't have to guts to order anything.

"Can I help you miss?" the young cashier asked with a bored look. Hermione nodded her head and pushed her salad over onto the counter. The worker looked Hermione over and snickered at her choice of food.

"Sure you don't want anything else? Like a steak or three?" the worker asked snidely. Hermione felt her eyes prickle before shaking her head and walking off the line. She was too fat to do anything.

'Too fat for salad, too fat for respect, too fat to live,' she thought dejectedly.

'No. No. It's your fault. You let yourself get discouraged too easily,' she continued silently as she wiped at her face with the backs of her hands, her palms were too sweaty for her to want to touch her face with them.

"Hey! Miss?!" a voice called behind her. Hermione turned around and stared in awe as a bleach blond man came racing towards her, her salad in hand.

"You ordered this right? I paid for it... some people can be real shit," he hissed the last bit as he handed her her food. She just stared at him wide eyed as realization hit her. She knew this man.

"Draco Malfoy?" she asked in a whisper. He looked at her curiously and nodded his head before he remembered who she was.

"Hermione Ganger? Since when do you work in this building?" Draco asked quickly. He looked her over with cold silver eyes and chuckled softly to himself. She didn't look any different than she had when they were in Hogwarts together. Still chubby and pretty in that innocent way that only she seemed to pull off.

"Yo, Drake!" Harry Potter yelled as he waved from his table. He watched his friend talk quickly to the girl he had chased down and then raised a brow as they both walked towards him.

"Hey, Harry. Hermione's going to join us for lunch," Draco said as he sat down next to Harry at the round white table. Hermione quietly sat down across them and placed her paperbag on the table along with her salad.

"Hey, Hermione. Ginny told me you'd be working here," Harry said with a friendly smile. Hermione smiled back softly at him as she began to pick at her salad.

"What's in the bag?" Draco asked after a tense moment.

"My um... my housemate packed me yesterday's leftovers," Hermione said as she pulled out the container with all the things she wished Ginny hadn't talked her out of eating.

"Looks good. Why eat grass when you can eat that?" Harry asked as he eyed his own salad with barely concealed disdain.

"Well, Ginny suggested that I start eating a bit healthier," Hermione responded with a shrug. They all stopped for a moment and eyed her packed lunch.

"If we split it it's not as bad right? I mean... we eat our salads and we split the good stuff. No one has to know, right?" Harry suggested as he twirled his plastic fork between his fingers. Draco nodded and shifted his eyes to look at Hermione for confirmation. Hermione bit her lip before smiling and opening the container up.

Draco smiled and offered her a wink as he scooped up a bit of mashed potatoes and shoved it into his waiting mouth.

"Shish! Thash hosh!" he cried out as he fanned his open mouth, the lump of mashed potatoes sitting on the center of his tongue with steam rolling from it in waves.

Hermione laughed along with Harry as they watched Draco force down the hot food. Draco glared at them before taking another scope and blowing on it to cool it off.

"So Hermione, how are you liking things here?" Harry asked after he'd sobered from his laughing fit. Hermione thought it over for a second and shrugged.

"It isn't bad. I was nervous this morning coming in but it's been nice. And being a desk editor isn't something that I find difficult," Hermione said with s slight smile. If Angelina were here she'd be so proud of her. She hadn't cried, run away, or thrown up once. And here she was, actually talking to people. Today was a historic day in Hermione's book.

"Oh, you work at Ravenclaw Publishing House, right? That's cool," Harry said as he scooped up a spoonful of peas and shoved them into his mouth like Draco had done earlier with the hot mashed potatoes.

"Harry works for a G&G Trading and I work upstairs at my family's law firm," Draco said as they all sat there eating her lunch, the all but salads forgotten.

"That sounds... fun?" Hermione winced out. Draco and Harry both chuckled and shook their heads with wide smiles.

"No, definitely not. Boring as hell, if we're honest. But it isn't all bad. The money's good," Draco said with a shrug. Hermione nodded slightly as she continued to eat. This time when they lulled into silence it wasn't uncomfortable in the least. Finally Hermione checked her watch and sighed as she stood.

"Sorry, I've got to be back in five. Thanks for allowing me to sit with you. I hope your day is good," Hermione said in one quick breath as she scurried off to the exit. Draco and Harry looked after her retreating form and then down at the empty container she had left.

"I'll return it to her after work," Draco muttered as he leaned back in his chair. Harry looked him over and shook his head slowly.

"Don't do it. I know exactly what you're thinking and from what Ginny tells me she's no where near ready to talk about that," Harry warned, his eyes locked in a stern glare. Draco raised his hands in surrender before sighing and slumping forward.

"I just want to ask. I didn't think I'd ever get the chance to and I want to know.** BUT **I won't. If she isn't ready who am I to force her?" Draco admitted as he stood and sighed.

"She's not. Ginny says she's been locked in her room for the past two years trying to avoid anyone after an incident with Ron. I was surprised she didn't runaway when she realized who you were," Harry responded with a shrug. He stood and pushed his chair in before grabbing Hermione's forgotten container.

"Ginny's supposed to come and drive her home. I'll give it to her when she comes up to see me."

Draco nodded and sighed before following behind Harry. He didn't want to scare her off or anything but he needed to know. It had haunted him for years and now that she was around he knew there was a chance he could finally get his answer.

Had she tried to kill herself because of him?

-0-

"We ate lunch together and I didn't pass out or anything!" Hermione exclaimed as she sat at the small dinner table in her and Angelina's kitchen. Angelina smiled as she stood she laddled sauce over the pasta.

"It sounds like you had a good day then," Angelina said as she brought their plates over to the table and sat across from her friend. Hermione nodded her head vigorously as she began eating her dinner.

"And we even shared lunch," Hermione said after a moment of chewing. Angelina raised a brow in confusion at this.

"Why? Did I pack too much?" she asked as she took a bite of her own dinner.

"No Ginny told me I should get a salad," Hermione muttered nervously. Angelina sighed in annoyance as she put her fork down and rose to get the phone, intent on cursing out their good friend.

"Ange! It's nothing, really. She was just trying to help," Hermione assured as she grabbed the phone out of Angelina's hand. Angelina rolled her eyes and sat down with a frown.

"She may have been trying to help but that doesn't mean I have to like how she goes about it. Your self-esteem isn't the best already and her shaming you into dieting isn't going to make things any better for you," Angelina concluded. Hermione smiled over at her friend before nodding her head.

"I don't think I'll give in again. The cashier made a mean remark when I tried to buy the salad," Hermione said wit a slight shrug.

"Did you report them? Do I need to come down there on my lunch break and make a complaint?" Angelina questioned. Hermione shook her head and laughed at the protectiveness of her friend. Sometimes she wasn't sure if Angelina was her friend or her mother.

"No. Draco bought it for me," Hermione whispered and winced as Angelina dropped her fork and pushed her chair back.

"Is that who you sat with? That bastard? After everything he's done to you?!" Angelina shouted, furious at both her friend and the man she had just mentioned. If Angelina had never had to hear anything about Draco Malfoy she would have died a happy woman.

"I know, I know. But he was nice and I didn't want to seem rude," Hermione whispered, her food forgotten as she cowered back in her seat.

"Nice? Did he apologise for being a little shit to you in school? Did he apologise for treating you like trash? Did he apologise for walking away when he saw what Ronald had done to you?!" Angelina raged as she paced back and forth in their kitchen. She looked over to her friend and sighed as she watched her begin to shut down.

"I'm sorry, Mione. I'm sorry but I'll never forgive him. I'll never forgive any of them. I'll never forgive myself," she whispered the last part as she pulled her young friend into a tight hug. Hermione nodded her head slowly as she held squeezed her friend back just as tightly.

"I know but... it's my choice who I forgive and who I don't. Please be okay with that? I want to stop locking myself in my room when I feel hopeless. I just want to be normal," Hermione whispered as tears began to run down her cheecks. Angelina nodded her own head and pulled back to wipe the tears from her own face.

"You don't need to be normal, you're perfect Hermione," Angelina mumbled. Hermione shook her head.

"But I'm not," she whispered low in response before walking out of the room with her head hanging down.

Angelina sat there for another moment, tears silently rolling down her face before she began cleaning up their dinner and packing Hermione a lunch for the next day. She made sure to pack three extras and slid two of them in Hermione's lunch bag. The two extras were for Harry and Draco, though she hadn't changed her mind about how she felt but she knew Hermione didn't need her approval to associate with whoever she wanted to. If she did she'd probably never talk to anyone aside from her or Ginny who she barely approved of most days. Hermione did, however, need her support in moving on. And how could she move on if Angelina wasn't standing behind her?

Angelina looked at the other contianer and placed it in the mircowave before leaving to go to her room after she checked to make sure the backdoor was unlocked just in case George decided to come back tonight.


End file.
